Partner Content

New Web Catalogs

Eastern Mountain Sports When Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS) launched its Website last November, it didn’t expect to generate much sales volume, but rather to increase brand loyalty and recognition. Instead, “we exceeded our sales expectations right from the grand opening of the site,” says Michelle Bourdelais, Web manager for the Peterborough, NH-based outdoor apparel and equipment retailer. While Bourdelais won’t disclose numbers, she says the average online order is 40% higher than the average in-store order. Prices range from $15 to $600.

This isn’t the first catalog venture for Eastern Mountain Sports, however. “We started a print catalog in 1969, but it eventually folded,” Bourdelais says, though she can’t recall when or why EMS dropped the catalog.

In addition to selling outdoor apparel and gear, the Website offers tips about outdoor activities and provides visitors with a staff-compiled product information guide that includes data on merchandise material and dimensions. “We would like to become a central online source of outdoor gear and apparel,” Bourdelais says.

BAB Holdings hen Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS) launched its Website last November, it didn’t expect to generate much sales volume, but rather to increase brand loyalty and recognition. Instead, “we exceeded our sales expectations right from the grand opening of the site,” says Michelle Bourdelais, Web manager for the Peterborough, NH-based outdoor apparel and equipment retailer. While Bourdelais won’t disclose numbers, she says the average online order is 40% higher than the average in-store order. Prices range from $15 to $600.

This isn’t the first catalog venture for Eastern Mountain Sports, however. “We started a print catalog in 1969, but it eventually folded,” Bourdelais says, though she can’t recall when or why EMS dropped the catalog.

In addition to selling outdoor apparel and gear, the Website offers tips about outdoor activities and provides visitors with a staff-compiled product information guide that includes data on merchandise material and dimensions. “We would like to become a central online source of outdoor gear and apparel,” Bourdelais says.

Beauty Buys Slaves to makeup needn’t trek to crowded department stores in search of the latest colors and products. In February, Synergy Brands, a Syosset, NY-based wholesaler/retailer of grocery, health, and beauty products, launched BeautyBuys.com, an online catalog of discounted brand-name cosmetics, fragrances, and professional haircare products for both women and men. Executive vice president Mair Fabish says he expects the target audience of women ages 18-55 to buy the men’s products as gifts. Prices range from $0.88 to $300, and the average order size is $75.

The response to the site has far exceeded expectations, according to Fabish. “The response was tremendous. It shut down our servers,” he says-adding that the company has since upgraded its servers.

Movies Unlimited Movies Unlimited, the Philadelphia-based cataloger of movies on video, has made its collection available online. The site launched in February, and according to catalog editor Irv Slifkin, the response rate has been “very good.” The Website’s average order size is $58, he says, with prices ranging from $10 to $200. “Since we have about 70,000 titles, it took time to get the Website right,” Slifkin says. “But it’s a competitive market-with companies like Amazon.com now selling movies-and we wanted to be a part of it.” Slifkin says that the site offers research and information for movie-trivia seekers, as well as weekly discounts on movies featuring actors whose birthdays are that week, and 30% discounts on films that have been nominated for or won an Oscar.

Slifkin says the Website’s audience includes avid movie collectors and the merely curious. And the company plans to add more features to the site. “We want to include stars’ movie picks and interviews with actors and people in the business,” Slifkin says. “We’re also going to start an e-mail news service that would inform our customers of price specials as well as of industry news.”